Sarah Polley and the dad she grew up with, Michael, tell a compelling story in this documentary. Photo:

The Williams sisters are one — well, two — of the best stories ever in professional sports, coming from South Central LA to take the rarefied, lily-white world of tennis by storm.

This documentary, a love letter to their sisterly bond, gives a reasonably engaging look behind the scenes. Directors Maiken Baird and Michelle Major intersperse a focus on 2011 — a difficult year for both, healthwise — with a chronological account of the sisters’ rise to tennis dominance and their unorthodox, fashion-forward imprint on the sport.

Older sis Venus has taken issue with the film’s portrayal of their father, Richard, as a womanizer (their many half-siblings are mentioned). But the film takes only a cursory glance at his intensive coaching relationship with the duo, and barely touches the fact of their being raised devout Jehovah’s Witnesses.

Still, any tennis fan interested in a straight-up account of what makes these fiercely talented players tick — and how they’ve felt, and continue to feel, about their reception by and place in the professional tennis community — will find much to enjoy in “Venus and Serena.”